Dolores Umbridge
Dolores Jane Umbridge's first appearance is in the fifth book of the series, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. We first meet her as one of Harry's interrogators as he is tried on charges of unauthorised practice of underage sorcery before the Wizengamot, a wizard's court. She is Senior Under-secretary to Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge. Umbridge is fanatically prejudiced against non-humans ("half-breeds") and passes a series of Anti-werewolf Legislations making it almost illegal for characters such as Remus Lupin to hold jobs. Umbridge is a short, squat woman resembling a large toad. She often wears a black velvet bow in her hair that reminds Harry of a fly about to be caught. She has a high, girly voice that Harry describes as sounding like poisoned honey. Senior Under-secretary Dolores Umbridge sets the action of the book into motion by taking umbrage at the suggestion made by Albus Dumbledore at the trial that the Dementors who attacked Harry were under Ministry of Magic control. Later in the book, it is revealed that Umbridge herself ordered the Dementors to attack Harry, a classic example of misdirection. Defense against the Dark Arts She is installed at Hogwarts as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor by order of the Ministry of Magic, teaching according to a politically restricted curriculum which would result in the students learning strictly the theory of Defence Against the Dark Arts; without the teaching of practical applications, most of the students feel that they will be left defenceless against the Dark Arts. When Harry contradicts the Ministry of Magic's official position that Lord Voldemort is dead, Umbridge is again offended, and punishes him by forcing him to write "I must not tell lies" over and over again in his own blood - using a magic quill that cuts into the flesh of his hand, eventually leaving him scarred. High Inquisitor Her power increases as she is appointed the first ever "Hogwarts High Inquisitor", in which she proceeds to evaluate the teachers at Hogwarts. When Harry forms a group to teach practical Defence Against the Dark Arts, Umbridge abolishes all student groups of three or more members. When Harry gives an interview about Lord Voldemort to The Quibbler, Umbridge then bans possession of the magazine. These actions are sanctioned by the Ministry of Magic in the form of Educational Decrees. With her new power, she dismisses Sybill Trelawney, professor of Divination, and is offended when Dumbledore replaces her with a centaur, since as a mixture of human and horse he is not of "pure blood", but a "filthy half-breed." Headmistress She soon forms the Inquisitorial Squad, which rewards certain students for reporting on others and sanctions them to act as enforcement goons. She tries to prosecute Harry for forming the Defence of Dark Arts club, but Dumbledore takes the blame, and leaves Hogwarts after a quick scuffle with Aurors and the Minister of Magic himself. Umbridge replaces him as Headmistress and finds herself the target of numerous pranks, many of which are orchestrated by the Weasley Twins. The teachers, who dislike Umbridge intensely, do as little to help her in her duties as possible. She later fires Hagrid, another mixed-race teacher. When attempting to subdue Hagrid with four wizards, they also seriously injure Professor Minerva McGonagall, who was protesting the force used to handle Hagrid. She also interferes with Harry's attempt to contact his godfather Sirius Black, but is outwitted by Hermione Granger, who tricks her into going into the Forbidden Forest, where she is subdued and almost killed by a herd of centaurs. She is ultimately rescued by Dumbledore, though how Dumbledore manages to rescue her from the human-hating centaurs without suffering any injury himself remains a mystery. It is possible that in saving her, Dumbledore created a life debt between them, as exists between Harry and Peter Pettigrew. After Voldemort appears in the Ministry of Magic - and is seen by a number of people, including Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic himself, thereby convincing him that Dumbledore was right - Dumbledore is restored as the Headmaster, and Umbridge, who had been in the school hospital wing, attempts to leave the castle without anyone noticing (presumably she is ashamed). Peeves the Poltergeist discovers her and chases her out with a walking stick and a sock full of chalk; McGonagall expresses regret at not being able to chase Umbridge herself because Peeves had borrowed her walking stick and she was not fully recovered. Though she does not speak, Umbridge is seen at Professor Dumbledore's funeral at Hogwarts. Back at the Ministry Following Voldemort's takeover of the Ministry of Magic, Umbridge resumes her post as Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, overseeing the registration of muggle-born witches and wizards. It is unclear where Umbridge's loyalties lie, whether she is loyal only to the existing government of the time, or if she is loyal to Voldemort himself. Her possession and use of Alistor Moody's "mad eye" following his murder at the hands of Death Eater's would suggest that Umbridge is in league with Voldemort, instead of simply being a loyal ministry employee. At some point, Umbridge received a locket as a bribe from petty thief Mundungus Fletcher. This locket was, in fact, Salazar Slytherin's Locket. While it is unclear whether or not Umbridge was aware that the locket contained a portion of Voldemort's soul, making it a horcrux, Umbridge does seem to be aware that it is a relic of Slytherin's, and lies about it's meaning when asked by Hermione (in the guise of Ministry employee Mafalda Hopkirk). During one of Umbridge's "pure blood" hearings, Umbridge and Yaxley, a Death Eater, are stunned and Hermione snatches the locket from around Umbridge's neck. Following Voldemort's demise and the de-corruption of the Ministry, Umbridge is arrested, interrogated, put on trial and imprisoned for her crimes against Muggleborns. Notes Professor Umbridge is easily the least popular Harry Potter character ever to grace the page, possibly surpassing even archvillain Lord Voldemort. J. K. Rowling herself has noted many times that Umbridge is "horrible." Novelist Stephen King, writing as a book reviewer for the July 11, 2003 Entertainment Weekly, |251753|0_0_,00.html noted the success of any novel due to a great villain, with Umbridge the "greatest make-believe villain to come along since Hannibal Lecter..." "Dolores" from the Spanish meaning "sorrows", and "Umbridge", a pun on the English "umbrage" meaning "offense or insult", combine to indicate that Umbridge is destined to do only harm and cause only unhappiness. Appearances *''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' (First appearance) **''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)'' ** Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game) *''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' *''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows''MuggleNet interview with J.K. Rowling References Umbridge, Dolores Umbridge, Dolores Umbridge, Dolores Umbridge, Dolores